Explorer Lewis' journey west started in Pittsburgh

Meriwether Lewis arrived at Fort Fayette in Pittsburgh on July 15, 1803, expecting to pick up the keeled boat he commissioned to take his top-secret expedition up the Mississippi and Missouri rivers.

Lewis designed the boat, and included a spacious cabin on the back and a hold capable of carrying 12 tons of provisions.

The couple of days he expected to stay here turned into six frustrating weeks, caused by "the unpardonable negligence of my boat builder," Lewis wrote in a Sept. 8, 1803, letter to President Thomas Jefferson.

Pittsburgh then was a booming port town of 2,400 people, supporting glass factories, a brewery, eight boat yards and paper, powder, iron, lumber and flour mills.

The boat builder Lewis hired had a habit of getting drunk and quarreling with his workmen, who often walked off the job. Lewis never identified the boat builder by name.

"We believe the boat was constructed on the U.S. Wharf (at Fort Fayette)," said Andy Masich, CEO of the U.S. Sen. John Heinz History Center.

Building the boat there allowed Lewis to comply with Jefferson's wishes to keep secret the expedition to explore the West, historians said.

"Fort Fayette was the right place to build the barge. To build it on the Monongahela, the whole operation would have been exposed, on view for months. Military personnel would constantly visit, and Jefferson wanted to keep it a secret," according to a manuscript by William Brunot.

Fort LaFayette was built in 1792 to replace Fort Pitt, which continued as a supply depot after the American Revolution until its condition deteriorated. Its name was shortened over the years to Fort Fayette.

The new fort rested on high ground about 100 yards from the banks of the Allegheny River on land bounded by Penn Avenue and what now are probably Ninth and Tenth streets.

It was built to protect Pittsburgh against Indian attacks and to serve as a chief supply base for Gen. Anthony Wayne's army between 1792 and 1794. It served as Commodore Matthew C. Perry's supply base during the War of 1812.

The fort was abandoned in 1814.

Additional Information:

Pitt Fact

Which commander of Fort Fayette almost joined Meriwether Lewis on his expedition to the West?

A. Wilton Parmenter

B . Moses Hooke

C . Henry Bouquet

D . William Metcalf

Answer: B.

Source: Senator John Heinz History Center